No mans' Land
by Jafia-leader
Summary: A new coven passes through Forks and trys to capture Bella-again- and Edward and Jacob leave with her to keep her safe;but will they succeed?angst,B/E,alternate ending J/E R
1. moonlight

**Disclaimer:I don't own anything,not even my own little finger.Well,ok,maybe that,but nothing else!If I did Edward wouldn't have so many old fashioned morals...;D**

**A/N: Hey,this is my first Fic,so let me know it its good/bad/terrible/in need of a Beta/in need of a new writer,that sort of thing...just like all writers,I'll be eternally grateful if you review,and I'm completely open to criticism,pointers and ideas,so please review-just no flamers!Flamers will be dismembered and fed to mountain lions o.o**

**I did my best to keep them in carachter,but hey, don't sue me if I slipped up!**

**Angsty B/E, alternate ending of J/E**

**--Bella POV--**

"What are you thinking about?"

It was about eleven o'clock at night, and Edward was lying behind me with his arm around me,his cool skin refreshing on mine.I'd really grown used to the Forks climate bt now,and the warmth of the summer night wasn't enough to make me sweat or feel uncomfortable, but I definitely prefferred the warmth under the blankets with his granite skin cooling mine.

Silence.

Charlie let out a rumbling snore.

And then "How much you remind me of a fragile pocelain doll in the moonlight..."

"Honestly Edward, we've been over this a million times!"the exasparation was clear in my voice even though it was hushed so we wouldn't wake Charlie "I'll only be fragile until after the wedding, and it's not that far away now, I doubt if anything dangerous is going to happen to me between now and next month!"

"And I'm sure it won't,unless you crash your truck from lack of sleep.Goodnight."

He pecked my cheek, and even that made my heart pound and made me sigh slightly, but I couldn't help but wonder what expression was on his face as I drifted towards sleep.

**--Edward POV--**

She looked so fragile,so breakable, so vunerable with a streak of moonlight splayed across her relaxed features, and I felt even more protective of her than I usually do.It was my job to protect her, and I wouldn't let her out of my sight again until she was changed,and maybe not even then.

Once I was sure that she was sleeping I let my thoughts drift back to where they kept returning to: the vision that Alice had on the way to school that morning.

I had to protect her.

Alice said that they would pass through before the week was out.I couldn't stop thinking about what had happened the last time a new coven had passed through.

What if one of them was a hunter,like James?

What if the hunter decided to hunt_ her_,like James?

I wouldn't be able to bear it, she had already had so much dumped on her, enough to make any regular 18 year old go crazy, it didn't seem fair to make her deal with this as well, which was why I hadn't picked her up the second that I heard Alice's thoughts, which was why I hadn't even told her...

I'm not sure what time exactly I came to the decision, but I decided to tell her as soon as she woke up.It wasn't fair to make her deal with so much, but I wasn't prepared to take any more risks with her.

I had to protect her.

I began forming a plan in my mind, we needed to leave imediately...Without disturbing her, I stood by the window and spoke to Alice in a hushed,fast voice on my phone.I asked her to set everything up- bags,car, a letter to Charlie that got 'delayed in the post' saying that Bella had qualified for a scholarship to a college in Dakota, and that she was expected to go for a trial run of a week on campus-free,of course.

Once I had everything sorted out I lay back down beside my love,and I went over my plans in my head,making sure that there were no holes in my logic,and that she would be completely safe until the sun began to rise and cast shadows and bars of pinky light on her innocent, clueless, beautiful face.

It was my job to protect her.

And I would do so completely willingly.

**Alrighty then...so, what do you think?**

**At the moment it's a B/E, but time changes things...It will be a Jakeward after I finish the fic and start an alternate ending!**

**Sorry for the ridiculous short-ness of this chapter,the next ones will be longer!**

**Reviews earn people cyber-hugs or cyber-carrots;your choice :D**


	2. Daybreakchapter 2

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Disclaimer:I don't own anything,not even my own little finger.Well,ok,maybe that,but nothing else!If I did Edward wouldn't have so many old fashioned morals...;D

**A/N:Ok,I've decided to make this really angsty,mainly because being the weirdo that I am,I'm actually enjoying the angst (weird,I know...)so this is no longer a slash fic.Well,for now ;D.Once I'm finished with all the angsty-goodness, I'll do an alternate ending of slashy-goodness!**

**Thanks to all who reviewed, I know the term 'Jakeward' is chilling to the very core, but thats just one ending!I really appreciate your input hands out cyber-carrots**

**On with the story!**

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--Edward POV--

The sun continued to rise, and I was sure that this was the first time I'd ever wanted _more_ time;usually time seemed abundant to someone as old as me, but I felt myself wishing for time to stand still;I wanted to stay with my arm around my fiance for ever, knowing that she was happy and untroubled in her slumber.

But,alas, the morning awoke in it's full,and as she began to stir I knew that I would have to cause her this worry,even if it was for her own protection.I grasped at loose ends,wondering feebly if she would like to go on a spontanious cruise,or perhaps visit her mother.But no,spending so much time around vampires had rubbed off on her a little,and I was sure that she would know that something was going on-she was very perceptive.It didn't help that I couldn't see her thoughts either.

She stirred,then raised her head and looked at me searchingly.She must have been remembering my strange behavior last night.I pressed my lips against her warm ones and smiled,though I was sure the smile didn't reach my eyes.She didn't seem fooled,but at least appeared to be less edgy.

As she went to wash in the bathroom I went over the entire plan in my head again, my stomach twisting in knots every time I heard Charlie move about in the kitchen,this made worse by the fact that I had enhanced hearing.Then Bella came back in,looking refreshed,beautiful,and slightly flushed.

The colour in her cheeks only reminded me of how human,how vunerable she was,and made what I was about to tell her even harder.

I opened my mouth to tell my love that her life was in danger because of me - again.

--Bella POV--

I woke up in Edwards arms.This was regular,but as soon as I recalled how detatched he had been last night I was instantly grateful.I don't think I would have been able to handle it if he hadn't kissed me and smiled;it would have reminded me too forcefully of when he left me.But no matter how much I wanted to be reasurred by his smile,it wasn't enough.He still seemed detetched,even if the only part that seemed that way were his eyes.I had learned by then that his eyes always told the truth,whether it was showing his hunger,or his emotions,but his positive greeting abade my fears slightly,and I left to shower and brush my teeth.

I did so frantically,worried about the cause of his distant expression,and also eager to get back to his side.

Once I had towel-dried my hair and was clean I went back to my room,where he was sitting in the rocking chair,looking absurdly beautiful as always,but also troubled and lost in thought.This expression was so fleeting it would have been easy to convince myself I had imagined it,but the truth was clear to me - something was going on.

Then his expression changed, and the sheer raw emotion in his eyes swept away my worry for that moment in time.His face was full of emotion,almost the most expession I'd ever seen playing on his face at one time.He looked torn,hurt by something,either an action or a decision, but I wasn't sure which.He looked guilty too,but his entire face was dominated by two core emotions:love and fear.

Thoughts started to come,but his unbreaking gaze stopped them quickly,before they had time to register.On the edge of my conciousness I could tell that they were things like "Laurent's alive!The La Push Pack didn't do it properly,or caught someone he brought with hom instead of Laurent!" and "Something's happened to one of the Cullens!Or one of the Werewolves!Or both!",but thankfully I couldn't concentrate with his unflinching gaze on me,not even in what could turn out to be a time of grief or fear.

I looked at him questioningly,and his expression grew even more pained.It frightened me that he wasn't even bothering to hide the pain and terror,it made me fear that whatever it was,It was a _big_ deal.

I heald my breath,waiting for him to tell me.He had to know by now that I knew, so he _had to_ tell me.

He opened his mouth to tell me...

**I apologise,I love cliffhangers!**

**Ok,sorry if there are any mistakes,I didn't check it!Once again, I apologise for the ridiculous short-ness of this chapter, once I really get into the story it'll get longer, I promise :D**

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	3. The plan

**Hey, I'm back...obviously :D so, read on, and for the love of :insert random god/band/frontman/woman:**

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_Disclaimer:I don't own anything,not even my own little finger.Well,ok,maybe that,but nothing else!If I did Edward wouldn't have so many old fashioned morals...;D_

**:hands out cyber cabbage: all reviews are much apprecited, keep going!**

**and now, on with the story! XD**

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**--Edward POV--**

She looked so distressed, and in some part of my brain I realised that it was my fault, but I was having too much trouble trying to quell my emotions, and couldn't mask my face like I always do when I don't want to upset her.Sometimes it was too easy to be myself- my _real_ self- with her, and now my gaurd had been let down after more than a hundred years of careful detatchment from humans, and she was paying the price.

I swore to myself after Victoria had been killed that I wouldn't let her be hurt like that again, and here I was, doing it again, hurting the one I wanted to protect.All through these thoughts going through my head, not once did I even consider leaving her to protect her, I had learned from _that_ particular mistake already, and even considering it would have torn apart my heart. My mouth was open, and about a milisecond had gone past with me consumed in thought, but now it was time to tell her.I closed my mouth, swallowed hard, and re-opened it, my resolve not to back out and use a pathetic excuse stronger now that the panic which had been clear in her eyes wasn't as obvious, and I was able to pretend that she was merely curious.

"Alice had a vision", I began and her eyes grew wide, the roses in her cheeks giving way to a ghostly pallor which would nearly rival my own.

"It's not a big deal, they all think I'm blowing this way out of proportion and worrying too much...", I looked at her pleadingly, as if asking for her forgiveness for causing her such a burden, but she seemed not to notice my expression, and asked the obvious question, the one I had forgotten to answer in my haste to reassure her and retreive the delicate flowers which had decorated her face, a reminder of how fragile and beautiful life- _true_ life- could be.

"What exactly did Alice see, Edward?" her voice barely shook, but was barely audible at the same time, and the strain was clear in it.

I tried a reassuring smile, but I couldn't quite manage one "Alice saw some strangers coming to Forks.A coven who lack the same . . . morals . . . as my family.It's nothing to worry about, she just saw them 'pop in' for a visit.I just over-reacted because of . . . well, you remember the last time a coven of Vampires came to visit Forks." realisation dawned on her face, and I could tell that she was remembering what had happened last time. She would always remember more about that than me, and I often wished that I could read her mind, just so that I could feel more responsible for what had happened, it had been my job to protect her.

I'd failed to protect her. I would not fail again. Of that I was sure.

"You're not really in any danger, I'm just being a bit overprotective, they won't have any real reason to go near you, but I'd be sick with worry the whole time, so last night I had Alice set up a reason for you to leave for a week- with me- which would be completely valid to Charlie."

She looked at me, and once again, I wanted to know what she was thinking, but this time for personal gain.

"So there's no actual _reason_ to leave town for a week? Did Alice see anything else? Did they know Victoria or James or Laurent? Could they possibly have any reason for coming near me, near the house even?"

"Well . . .no. But you know how selective Alice's vision is, if they decide to do anything on the spot like the last coven who were just 'passing through', we'll have no way of knowing. It would just put my mind to rest if you were safe, and I knew you were with me."

She sighed, giving in."Alright then, but this explanation of yours had better be good; we do call him _Chief _Swan for a reason."

I smiled, glad that she had agreed so easily. I'd known she would, it was obvious- to me, at least- that she was scared, but didn't want to appear weak, which was stupid, me and my family are _Vampires_, how could anyone accuse her of being easily scared? "It's a plan formulated by Alice and I- of course it's good. You lucky girl, you qualified for Augustana college in Dakota, and have been asked to go and stay on-campus for a week,on a trial run. Free of charge, of course."

"Of course" she repeated "And I suppose it was delayed in the post, and I have to leave today?"

I was surprised " Yes, actually. . ."

" There's no need to sound so surprised, I may not be quite as old as you, but I do have _some_ sense you know. So do I leave immediately, or can I go to school today?" She didn't sound annoyed or apprehensive, which was good; she was glad to leave what _could_ end up as a dangerous situation, talking her into it wasn't nessicary. " Oh, I think that you can manage half a day of school at least; the flight is at three o' clock, and I can have you there in less than an hour. But the note Charlie has says we're taking the five o' clock flight, so we'll have time to drive there and get something to eat before the flight to 'Dakota' " I chuckled, not sure if the mental image of me getting something to eat in the airport was funny or no.t Bella obviously didn't think so, because she flinched involuntarily, and I immediately rose from the rocking chair and wrapped my arms around her, my face in her hair, my voice in her ear.

" You're in no real danger, I promise, they probably won't even arrive for a few more days, and then they'll have no reason to distinguish your scent from hundreds of others, but I'd like to be careful, after last time . . . I'm just not taking any more chances with you." She had her arms around me too now, and I relished her warmth, yet still being reminded of her frailties.

" So where are we really goi- " She begaun to enquire before Charlie cut her off with an excited and confused shout from downstairs "Bella! You got some post!"

" Wait here; I'm not done with my questioning." she warned me, then shouted down to Charlie " Sure Dad, coming now!" and left the room, downstairs to where Charlie waited with an excited expression and a letter open in his hand.

**--Bella POV--**

" No reason to worry. I'm completely safe. Completely. They'll only pass through briefly, there's no reason for them to smell me out." I kept telling myself that as I walked downstairs to Charlie slowly. It wasn't him who was overreacting, it was _me_. And I _would_ be fine. I banished thoughts of fear and concentrated instead on the upcoming week with Edward. The upcoming week _alone_ with Edward. That cheered me up remarkabley quickly, and I was in a relatively good mood as I reached the botttem step and turned the corner to face Charlie.

" What's up Dad? It's pretty early for you to be so . . . awake." He disregarded this remark, choosing to hand me the letter instead.

"You've been accepted by Augustana College in South Dakota." He said, smiling proudly. I was a little offended that he was giving off the impression of not having thought I'd get in anywhere, but pushed those thoughts away, manufacturing emotions instead.

"Really? That's great!That one had some really great facilities, I'll have to comb through the leaflet again . . ."

"Or, you could just open the letter! "

I feigned confusement, trying to make it authentic. " Why so eager, dad? "

He rolled his eyes "just open the letter, Bella "

"Ok . . . "

I opened the letter, and read it quickly, then fished around in the envelope for the tickets.

"Wow."

"I know. A whole week for free. . . I'd be suspicious if the college didn't have such a good name"

My face fell. I was really getting good at acting.

"Aw, but the flight's today! At three o' clock! We haven't notified the school, and you're working, so I wouldn't be able to get a lift, and parking costs too much, so I wouldn't be able to get to Port Angeles . . .maybe we should just forget about it dad. "

"No, no, you could drive yourself there and later on I'd pick it up and get someone else to drive the cruiser home for me. This is a great oppertunity Bella, and you're not going to misss it just because of a lift."

"Thanks dad, I don't know what to say . . . I guess I'll go pack, I might as well go to school for most of the day and tell them that I'll be gone myself."

"Yeah, you do that. I'm gonna go get breakfast."

My father seemed to have run out of the days supply of words, so I left and climbed the stairs to my bedroom, where Edward was waiting for me, a small suitcase beside him looking very full.

" Did you pack? You didn't have to, I have loads of time to kill pretending to pack."

He shrugged " It'll give you one less thing to stress yourself about, and, as you said, more time . . . " Hewalked over to me, and enclosed me in his icy embrace, his smell all about me. I sighed contentedly, and we stayed like that for a while, until he moved his head nearer to mine and closed the distance between our mouthes, his moving against mine, and all was calm in the world, just as it had been before the vision.

Of course _that_ was the time Charlie decided to yell goodbye up the stairs, and I was forced to break away to reply. Edward carefully and gracefully untangled himself from my arms which had wound around him sometime in the process of our kiss. I was still a little dizzy, and he helped me over to the edge of my bed until i regained full conciousness and full control of my respitory system.

"You never answered my question" I said once I was able to speak again "Where_ are_ we going?"

"The Rockies."

I was speechless " The _Rockies_? Are you serious? That's insane!"

"Actually, when you think about it, it's not really. They're far away, and huge. No one's likely to go anywhere near us. We'll be safe." He said as if it were the simplest train of thought to follow in the world.

I sighed in resignation. " Fine, to the Rockies!"

" But first, to school." He said, now smiling gently, but he still looked on edge, and suddenly I couldn't wait until we were in the Rockies, because I knew that only then would he relax.

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**So. . . . how was it?? You all know where the button is.Press it. Press it now :-D No really. NOW.**

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	4. the twist

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, not even my own little finger. Well, ok, maybe that, but nothing else! If I did Edward wouldn't have so many old fashioned morals. . . ;D**

**A/N: Alright, so my updates havent exactly been frequent, but I have to use the family computer when no one else is around, so cut me a little slack :D**

**I'd appreciate it if anyone who reads this would review, any pointers or constructive criticism I can get would be greatly appreciated.**

**And now, ON WITH THE STORY!**

**--Edward POV--**

I was delighted that she seemed to understand why we had to leave, and that she had aggreed to the Rockies so easily; I'd thought that _that_ particular task would be hard.I would have to watch her while we were there though, she was so clumsy that she could easily find, and then fall into, a deep chasm. Yes, the mountains were probably even more dangerous than the coven were for her, but I wanted to make sure that she was far away. I would not rest( not that I ever do, but I wouldn't _relax_) until we had left on the plane, and her safety was assured.

She was now eating her breakfast, and I was watching her with mild fascination. It had been so long since I'd eaten, and my memories of being human were so few and time-obscured that I couldn't remember what it was like to have a human hunger for nutrition rather than a hunger for blood. I couldn't remember a time when human food held any taste, or interest to me. It seemed like cardboard that broke up into dry little balls in my mouth, and I was amazed every time a human seemed to relish a meal, or even to not be disgusted by their food.

She stopped eating, and I realised that she was finished, and she placed her bowl in the sink.

I stood up quickly, and we made our way to the car that Alice had just parked outside. I was sure that it was going to be a long morning until we left on the plane, but I was goot at being paitent. After all, I'd had a hundred odd years to practice it.

**--Bella POV--**

He watched me as I ate, and I wondered how it must feel to never hunger for food, but only for the lives of friends and neighbours. It didn't matter to me. I would become a 'monster' whether I liked the conditions or not. It was worth it to be with him, forever.

I was surprised when we went out the front door to where Alice had pulled up in the car; It wasn't the usual silver volvo, but a black opel with tinted windows . . . and it seemed to smell of strongly of flowers. Alice must have been under strict instructions to get a car that didn't have our smells in it and wouln't smell of us once we got in, and she'd gone a bit overboard with the last instruction, using up what was probably more than five cans of flowery air freshener.

We got in and parked in our usual place when we reached the school.

" Alice, thank you" He siad in his perfect, silken voice.

I guessed that she had spent the car ride telling him what she had done and set up for our little 'holiday', and I was grateful too, because no matter what I was telling myself, I was scared.

Before school started Edward and I went to the office and told them that we'd be gone, and assured them that they could check it out with Carlisle and Charlie who would tell them the same thing as we had.

The day passed normally, handing in assignments, telling everyone at lunch where we were going. Angela was delighted for us; she obviously hadn't thought that I'd get in anywhere either.I resolved to read a dictionary when I got back, it might boost peoples image of my intelligence.

Lunch was just over, and we were walking to our classes as it happened.

Alice stopped in her tracks and in the middle of a coversation about what colleges she had applied to with Angela. Her eyes clouded over.

She was having a vision. I stopped and stared at her, as did Edward. He walked over to her quickly, making a joke to Angela about how short an attention span she had, and was smiling, acting as though she was daydreaming, but he didn't fool me. Something had changed, probably something to do with the visiting coven, and that rooted me to the spot.

She blinked, and snapped out of it, saying something about a sudden epiphany of what she wanted to do for a graduation party. But I saw the look of horror on her face that only lasted for a split second before she disguised it, and it made my stomach coil tighter than it had been all morning.

Luckily Edward and I had English near where Alice had French, and we managed to get away from the crowd of people and around the back of building four, hidden by the trees around the side of the building.

I knew that Edward had already read Alice's thoughts, and knew what she had seen, so I was grateful that they were going to fill me in before we decided on an action. I could tell from Edwards expression that whatever it was that Alice had seen, it was bad.

I waited expectantly for them to break the news, growing more and more nervous as I waited. Eventually, after what felt like an age, Alive opened her mouth. " There's been a slight complication. The visiting coven are coming a little earlier than I'd thought. I'm not sure when, but earlier." she said, answering my unasked question. That didn't seem _too_ bad. It could be worse.

" And"

That was the bit I was going to have trouble with.

" I _really_ can't tell when, but they're going to come here. To the school. They probably just won't know where to find Carlisle, so they'll want to ask for directions from us."

Edward sighed " But why would they even want to speak with Carlisle? How would they even know that we're here?" He looked troubled.

" Well" replied Alice" If you still want to go, I'll contact you as soon as I find out."

Edward paused for a moment, unsure. " Yes, we're still going, I need to keep her as safe as possible . . . I just hope that we get out early enough . . . Did yoou have any reason to believe that they would arrive today?"

" No, it could be any day, but they're coming here."

" I don't want her smell lingering around here when they come." They exchanged a glance " Just in case."

" We'll leave early; right now in fact. "

**This chappie is probably terrible, so sorry, but I'm typing this at 5 in the morning with my eyes about to close involuntarily, so I think that it went pretty well :D**

**Anyhoo, as always, r&r, and cyber-veggie of the week is: CYBER-APPLE!! **

**And yes, I know that apples aren't vegetables, but my friend meadhbh decided to make fun of me and everything I do, :including this fic even though she's never read it: until I add in her 'slashy apple', so... this one's for you, mayvie!**


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